Beginner Bouldering Program

[livzabka]

Hey guys! 

I have a question or two or maybe I just need to talk out these plans with some of you fine folks. So I bought the Rock Climbers Training Manual and red it cover to cover, I'm beyond excited to start training. 

I'm primarily interested in bouldering and am definitely a novice when it comes to this stuff. After reading the manual, I've been trying to put together a more personalized beginner training program and am just a bit stuck on how to really modify it for a beginner. 

I was thinking of taking some of the pre-determined programs already stated for beginners in the book and following those or modifying the advanced boulder's program so it's more beginner friendly by altering some of the reps, etc. I'm hoping this is making sense. Any and all advice is welcome on how to really construct this. 

Thanks,

Liv

[tedwelser]

I think the answer depends a bit on the training and bouldering options that you have convenient to you.  I do almost all of my training in home bouldering gyms where I can train exactly how I want to.  If I had that same luxury but I was looking to improve from a beginner level with a focus on bouldering I would do a slightly shortened version of the intermediate program for sport climbing, but I would do all of my climbing workouts through bouldering, and my send season would be focused on boulder problems, not sport climbing.

Some people would argue that it is a waste of time to spend effort on the ARC and PE portions but I think that is wrong for several reasons.  First, ARC training is a huge source of skill improvement. This is especially true if you can do some outdoor boulder problem traverses and circuits to really spend bunch of time moving and paying attention to movement and precision. Similarly the PE intervals are really good for cementing a precise sequence in your head and executing it over and over.  I use a 25-28 move rising traverse with lots of foothold options and the mental focus it takes is really good practice for projects generally.  

I also think that the intermediate HB routine is much better as a learning experience than the beginner one because the first set of each grip serves as a warmup for the second.  This provides an experiential lesson in the importance of grip specific warmups for maximizing strength.  It is a great lesson when you feel the second set as easier than the first, even though it is heavier.   

Finally,  I think the educational benefit of doing all of the training cycles in the sport climbing will pay long term dividends for your bouldering career and that far outweigh the short term detriment of not spending your time exclusively on strength and power.   

 

[tedwesler]

Thanks so much Ted! I really appreciate you taking the time to respond so thoroughly.

[alexandra]

I pretty much agree with what Ted said, except for the ARC phase. ARCing was too hard for me mentally (perhaps I got too bored too quickly?) and made me not wanting to train. If you are a boulderer, chances are you have a short attention span too

How much of a beginner are you? are you just starting to climb? if you are a complete beginner, I would suggest to go through the whole program as prescribed (ARC, strength where you follow the intermediate protocol, power where you only do limit/hard bouldering and NOT campusing yet, PE). This way, you would get an idea of what are your needs and weaknesses, where do you need to focus more, and you will have a better base to plan your long term training.

[livzabka]

Hey Alexandra,

All great points. Thank you for taking the time to respond as well.

I'm definitely a newbie. I climbed for a few months and loved it then took some time off from climbing to work on other goals. Now I'm looking to get back into it and really focus on getting better because I'm noticing more and more how much I'm drawn to bouldering and the climbing community and how fun and challenging the sport is as a whole. I have been trying to climb outside up in RMNP and the Flat Irons in Colorado and am at the V0-V2 level (barely). I've taken notes on things I want to improve, etc.

I'm lacking in strength and technique for sure, my limbs just flail about as if independent from my body. I've talked to a lot of people who are near the level I want to be and they all suggest different things when it comes to training, that's why I bought this book and have been reading it as thoroughly as possible.

So I think I'm going to follow what you and Ted said and mix aspects of both the beginner and intermediate sport programing but work everything out on bouldering if that makes sense/if I'm interpreting that correctly I don't think I'm going to do the campusing yet (as you suggested).

[Lundy]

Liv,
I think Alexandra's and Ted's advice is spot on for someone who's been climbing a bit longer than you, but since you're literally just starting out, climbing V0, and admit that you feel like you're flailing, it's almost certain that your greatest gains at this point are going to come from just lots of climbing. You need to build a database of movement in your head by climbing as much as you can and figuring out how to use your body position and feet to get up climbs, before you start working on strength. I would give it a year of lots and lots of climbing before trying to train finger strength, and I think you'll probably see enormous gains, as climbing is still, first and foremost, a skill sport, not a strength sport, especially when you're talking about grades below like V6-V7.

Hi again -- adding one thing.  I think it should be made clear that this isn't one of those "you shouldn't train until you're x,y,z strong because otherwise you'll hurt yourself" posts.  I think with Mark and Mike's methods, you can vary the training stimulus quite dramatically to make it safe no matter how strong you are (i.e. all the threads around here about using hangboarding to recover from finger injuries).  The point I'm trying to get across is that I think the greatest return on investment for you will be more climbing.  Meaning, you'll almost certainly progress more slowly by worrying about strength and power when you don't have the technique to apply it correctly.  Sorry if that didn't come off clearly the first run!

[livzabka]

Haha Lundy your advice and insight is always appreciated.

I guess I must clarify in that before I took some time off I was able to get above a V0, I was doing solid V3's/V4's in the gym. Now, I know scaling is all relative for the most part, but my purpose of doing this training is to become more focused and educated to the nuances of climbing, specifically bouldering. After taking that time off and looking to get more into this, I want to train smarter than before. It just so happens that because I took off the amount of time I did, I feel as though I'm back to square one.

I agree with you on climbing more, I just want to climb smarter too.

[alexandra]

some more thoughts on what Lundy said: I actually agree with him that, at your level, your time will be much better spent just climbing (bouldering if you will) at the gym and outdoors rather than hang boarding, when needing to take a day or two off (during which you could be climbing) etc. Even though strength is generally good, I actually feel that in the case of a beginner climber (not to attach grades to what beginner means, but I would say while you are still climbing below V5/6 outdoors, which would be something like V7 plus indoors usually) it can hurt. the stronger you are, the less you focus on technique, and as a result you don't lean to climb and instead learn to pull.I started off with a decent amount of upper body strength and it definitely hurt me, I still don't know how to put my feet on ;p So why not just climb, get some advice/coaching on technique and drills you can do to improve it (there are some in the book in the ARC section), and then re evaluate where you stand after 6 months or so? I guarantee, if your footwork is better than your finger strength, you will be out climbing most of the stronger climbers shortly. Then you can worry about getting your strength up to speed, which you will definitely need around the higher grades. If you are set on hang boarding, then why not reduce it to once a week so that you don't have to take as many rest days/recover and get to go climbing more?

[livzabka]

Hmm...yeah I thought about it overnight. I think you all make great points. I definitely need to work on technique so dedicating some time to that will be pretty beneficial. Thanks again If any more thoughts or suggestions pop up, please shout them out.

[ehowell]

Sorry -- late to the conversation here. I think everything above is well said, and I agree that technique will take you a long way in any style of climbing. This might be even more the case in bouldering, where subtle body positioning and hip movement are key to taking weight off those god-awful tiny crimps and shit slopers! That can make all the difference between sending and spending most of the day with your ass on the pad, which is generally my experience when bouldering!

So, I think everyone agrees that ARCing can be mentally draining, but maybe you need more of the technique aspect than the actual metabolic response. With that being said, perhaps create a base fitness phase less focused on being on the wall for 20-30 minutes with a steady pump, but just trying to bang out as many easy boulder problems as you can, whether that's in the gym or outside. I do that a lot to break up the monotony of ARCing. Bring some headphones, focus on breathing, good hip and body fluidity -- basically make it a work of art!

Then move on to the strength and power training as suggested above. Also, really take some time to focus on core for your supplemental exercises (I like TRX routines for maximum trunk engagement). After 2-3 months you'll be psyched. The gains in the early seasons (if you're strict and stick to the plan) are really amazing. Enjoy!